Comparing the effects of two methods of education (online versus offline) and gender on information security behaviors

The importance of information security is increasing, and various efforts are being made to improve users' information security behaviors. Among these various efforts, information security education is mainly aimed at providing users with information security knowledge and improving information security awareness. This study classified the types of information security education into offline and online to examine the effects of each education method on attitudes toward information security (perceived severity, vulnerability, self-efficacy and response-efficacy) and information security behaviors. A survey was conducted for users with information security education experiences. The results obtained by comparing the differences in the path coefficients of personal information security behaviors according to information security education experiences showed that security behaviors were more significant in the online experience group than the offline group. In addition, gender differences were analyzed, and it was found that females had a greater impact on information security attitudes than males. This study also found that among Internet users with online information security education experience, females tend to have more information security behavior than males, but there were contrasting results among users with offline information security education experiences. The results of this study finally address the necessity of reflecting users' personalities in the systematic design of information security education in the future. Furthermore, the results of this study support the need for an appropriate education system that sufficiently understands education types to maximize the effects of information security education.